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By Correspondent in Abuja.
An Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) witness, Bello Umar, has told a Federal High Court in Abuja how a company CEO, Olugbenga Obadina, allegedly received ₦2.1 billion from the office of former National Security Adviser (NSA), Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd), without executing any contract.
Umar, the first prosecution witness (PW-1), made the revelation while being led in evidence by EFCC’s counsel, Ibrahim Buba, before Justice James Omotosho.
According to Umar, an EFCC investigator, the funds were traced to Obadina, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Almond Projects Limited, listed as the 1st and 2nd defendants in the case marked FHC/ABJ/CR/142/2016.
He explained that investigations began after a complaint from the NSA’s office alleged that Obadina received the entire payment for a contract that was never executed.
“We wrote to the Office of the National Security Adviser to provide us with Obadina’s payment schedule. We also contacted several banks for statements of account,” Umar said.
“The NSA’s office confirmed that it never had any contract with the defendant. The total amount involved is ₦2.1 billion.”
Umar further said the funds were paid in six tranches into Obadina’s accounts at Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) and Zenith Bank. The EFCC later confirmed through the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) that Obadina owned Almond Projects Limited.
He told the court that Obadina was invited for questioning but failed to provide evidence of any project executed. His statement, Umar said, was taken in the presence of his lawyer, Dr. Nasiru.
The EFCC’s counsel, Buba, sought to tender six documents identified by the witness, including letters from the NSA’s office, bank statements, CAC documents, and Obadina’s statement.
However, the defence counsel, Adeola Adedipe, SAN, objected to the admissibility of some of the documents, arguing that they were uncertified adding that Obadina’s statement was obtained under duress.
Adedipe claimed that the defendant spent about 40 days in EFCC custody before his statement was taken, violating Sections 28 and 29 of the Evidence Act and Section 17(2) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), 2015.
He also argued that there was no video recording of the interrogation, urging the court to reject the statement.
In response, Buba maintained that the documents from the NSA were properly sourced and relevant to the case. He insisted that Obadina’s statement was taken voluntarily and in the presence of his lawyer.
Justice Omotosho admitted the documents from GTB, Zenith Bank, the CAC, and a letter from the NSA’s office as Exhibits PWA, PWB, PWC, and PWD respectively. The judge, however, adjourned the ruling on another letter dated May 5, 2016, until December 2.
Obadina was re-arraigned on January 13, 2024, on an eight-count charge bordering on money laundering involving ₦2.17 billion. He pleaded not guilty and was granted ₦500 million bail with two sureties in like sum.
In one of the counts, the EFCC alleged that on April 3, 2014, Obadina and his company took possession of ₦648 million paid into Almond Projects Ltd’s Zenith Bank account by the Office of the NSA without any contract award.
The alleged offence contravenes Section 15(2)(d) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended in 2012) and is punishable under Section 15(3) of the same Act.
Our correspondent recalls that Obadina was first arraigned in 2016 before Justice Nnamdi Dimgba, who later adjourned for adoption of final written addresses before his elevation to the Court of Appeal in 2024.
Edited by Dada Ahmed.
